Category Archives: Oregon

Senator Wyden fights for new patent office in Portland

29 Saturday Oct 2011

Posted by in Federal Initiatives, Oregon, Patent, Portland, Trademark

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Senator Ron Wyden has plans to bring a new patent office to Portland. Wyden met with about 35 local business and public officials this past week to plot how Portland can convince the U.S. Patent and Trademark Office to locate a new satellite office in Portland.

The America Invents Act, passed into law in September, calls for the U.S. patent office to establish three satellite offices around the country. The USPTO has already decided to put one of the new offices in Detroit. Each office is expected to employ between 200 and 500 people.

However, Portland is not the only western city campaigning for one of the new satellite offices. San Francisco and Denver are apparently currently leading the pack based on their strong tech sectors.

“You strip it all down and someone in the West is going to get one of these offices,” Wyden said. “We need to pull out all the stops.”

Check out OregonLive.com for the full story.

Death by 1000 Patent Lawsuits: Amazon Sued Again

28 Friday Oct 2011

Posted by in District of Oregon, Intellectual Property, Litigation, Oregon, Patent

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Amazon.com, the world’s biggest online retailer, was hit with more intellectual property lawsuits in the third quarter.

In its quarterly earnings report filed yesterday with the U.S. Securities & Exchange Commission, Amazon, No. 1 in the Internet Retailer Top 500 Guide, revealed that the company is now battling 18 separate intellectual property lawsuits, including eight filed in September. Among those is a case filed in Oregon District Court…Select Retrieval Inc. filed a lawsuit for infringement of a patent for data display software with actions and links that are integrated with various types of data.

Amazon is going to have to do some serious sales this holiday season to cover those legal fees. Ouch.

See Internet Retailer for more info and full list of lawsuits.

Voodoo Doughnuts featured on the USPTO Facebook Page

24 Monday Oct 2011

Posted by in Intellectual Property, Oregon, Trademark

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Pretty cool to see Portland’s own Voodoo Doughnuts featured on the United States Patent and Trademark Office’s Facebook Page today for “Creepy IP.”

There’s nothing creepy about the savviness with which Voodoo has been protecting their trademarks. Check out their expanding portfolio:

I wonder if they’ve tried to protect the pink box.

 

Oregon Trademark Litigation Update – Hearthside Food Solutions, LLC v. Bibiji Inderjit Kaur Puri

14 Friday Oct 2011

Posted by in District of Oregon, Intellectual Property, Litigation, Oregon, Trademark

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Hearthside Food Solutions, LLC v. Bibiji Inderjit Kaur Puri

Plaintiff Hearthside Food Solutions, the “largest privately-owned bakery in the United States,” has turned to the Oregon federal judiciary for assistance in sorting out a trademark dispute with the widow of Yogi Bhajan. Facing accusations of infringement from the widow and unable to successfully negotiate an amicable compromise, Plaintiff has filed for a Declaratory Judgment of Non-Infringement for their PEACE CEREAL, GOLDEN TEMPLE and YOGI marks.

We’ll have to wait for Defendant’s Answer/Counterclaims for more information but this case probably arises from the larger dispute over “The Fight For Yogi Bhajan’s Empire.”  Marketing moves quicker than legal it seems as Plaintiff has already moved to rebrand its Yogi brand products:

The full Complaint is below. Stay tuned to the Oregon Intellectual Property Law Blog for updates as the case proceeds.

“If you want to learn something, read about it.
If you want to understand something, write about it.
If you want to master something, teach it.” Yogi Bhajan

Court Case Number:    3:11-cv-01238-HU
File Date:    Thursday, October 13, 2011
Plaintiff:     Hearthside Food Solutions, LLC
Plaintiff Counsel:     Kenneth R. Davis, II, Parna A. Mehrbani of Lane Powell, PC
Defendant:     Bibiji Inderjit Kaur Puri
Cause:     Declaratory Judgment of Non-Infringement of the Peace Mark; Declaratory Judgment of Non-Infringement of the Golden Temple Mark; Declaratory Judgment of Non-Infringement of the Yogi Mark
Court:    Oregon District Court
Judge:     Magistrate Judge Dennis J. Hubel

Oregon Trademark Litigation Update – Christopher Douglas v. Leigh Keno

07 Friday Oct 2011

Posted by in District of Oregon, Intellectual Property, Litigation, Oregon, Trademark

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Christopher Douglas v. Leigh Keno et al

Court Case Number: 3:11-cv-01204-BR
File Date: Thursday, October 06, 2011
Plaintiff: Christopher Douglas
Plaintiff Counsel: Thomas Freedman, Jr. of Pearl Law LLC
Defendant: Leigh Keno, Leslie Keno, Theodore Alexendar USA, Inc
Cause: Trademark Infringement (Lanham Act), Unfair Competition, Unfair Trade Practices
Court: District Court of Oregon
Judge: Judge Anna J. Brown

Zynga files Answer and Counterclaims in Oregon Trail Lawsuit

17 Friday Jun 2011

Posted by in District of Oregon, Intellectual Property, Litigation, Oregon, Trademark

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Zynga has filed Answer and Counterclaims in their lawsuit with The Learning Company, makers of the Oregon Trail. Long story short, Zynga denies everything and asks for a Declaratory Judgement of Non-Infringement. They claim their use of the term “Oregon Trail” was a descriptive and fair use. Take a look for yourself below:

[Update 10/26/11: There’s been no action in the courts on this case since an August 5 conference was cancelled. Stay tuned for updates. Perhaps the Oregon Trail was not a popular Frontierville expansion?]

Oregon Trail Owners Sue Zynga, Maker of Frontierville

20 Friday May 2011

Posted by in Copyright, Intellectual Property, Litigation, Oregon, Trademark

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Interesting IP litigation story from Kotaku:

The May 30 launch of an “Oregon Trail” expansion pack in the popular Facebook game Frontierville has caught notice of the company holding the copyright to the edutainment classic, and it has sued to put a stop to the plans of Frontierville maker Zynga.

The lawsuit, filed by The Learning Company in federal court in Massachusetts, alleges that Zynga cut a trailer for its “Oregon Trail” missions (above) that highlights similarities between them and the The Oregon Trail notably “setting up a wagon, provisioning, hunting, fording rivers, and helping others.” For the record, the trailer refers not to dysentery but “the Rocky Mountain Scoots.”

[Yes, the lawsuit is going on in Massachusetts but I couldn’t avoid mentioning it here.]

Full Complaint:

Check out Gamasutra for more details.

Oregon Patent Litigation Update – Digimarc v. Shazam

11 Tuesday Jan 2011

Posted by in Intellectual Property, Litigation, Oregon, Patent

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The Digimarc v. Shazam patent ligitation filed back in November 2009 has been dismissed while the parties discuss ways to work together. The parties recognize they have a number of mutual commercial interests and have agreed it is best not to have the distraction and expense of a lawsuit as they explore possible synergistic opportunities.

Patent litigation gets expensive, eh? I could have told them that from the beginning…

Source: Market Watch

Oregon’s Kettle Foods, Nike Jordan are ‘Hottest Brands’

05 Wednesday Jan 2011

Posted by in Oregon, Trademark

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Two of Advertising Age’s “Hottest Brands of the Year” are linked to Oregon companies, the industry publication announced recently.

Salem-based Kettle Foods and Nike’s Jordan brand were singled out for the annual acknowledgement, which singled out 40 brands for success in 2009 — everything from Pepto Bismol to airline Jet Blue.

Kettle earned its nod for record growth and marketing innovation, for which the company credited its long-standing public relations firm, Maxwell PR.

“As our primary marketing engine public relations has done the heavy lifting for Kettle Brand,” Michelle Hunt, vice president of marketing for Kettle Foods, said in a statement. “With a limited budget and the bar set high, Maxwell has continued to keep the brand fresh and our fans engaged – and it’s paid off with significant and sustained growth.”

Keith Houlemard, president of Beaverton-based Nike’s Jordan brand, was singled out for his leadership of the business unit.

Since deciding to drop Nike’s trademark Swoosh from its sneakers more than a decade ago, the brand has grown to dominate the high-end basketball market, Ad Age reported.

Source: Portland Business Journal